A Kind of Magic Read Online Free Page A

different.”
    She gestured toward his left hand. “I see you’ve quit wearing your ring.”
    He rubbed his thumb against the spot where the wedding ring used to be. “Yeah. Everyone seems to think that seven years is long enough, and since I know she’s not coming back, I figured it was about time I tried to move on.”
    She placed a surprisingly gentle hand on his shoulder. “I know it’s difficult. Everyone mourns in his or her own way, and everyone has a different pace. You notice that I never remarried after my husband died.”
    He refrained from saying that there weren’t too many centenarians in the dating pool, because he’d seen what she could do with a well-aimed fireball. Instead, he swallowed the sarcastic remark and said, “Thanks.”
    Just as Athena came bustling out of the back with a tea tray, the front door bell jingled and Emily Drake entered, Beau the bulldog waddling behind her on a leash. Michael noticed that she, too, instinctively ducked when she came through the doorway.
    “Whoa, Michael, this is a surprise,” she said as she unclipped Beau’s leash from his collar. The dog headed straight for his bed behind the counter and commenced snoring.
    “I guess it is weird seeing your neighbor away from your building.”
    “No, I meant that you must be having a supernatural incident, too.” Belatedly remembering her manners, she said, “Hey, Amelia and Athena.”
    “You’re just in time for tea,” Athena said. Michael noticed that she’d brought out extra cups.
    Emily flopped into one of the chairs and stretched out her long legs. “So, what do you have?” she asked, taking a cup from Athena.
    “Kelpie in Central Park.”
    “Is that the seal thing or the horse thing?”
    “Horse,” Amelia replied.
    “You sure it wasn’t just a carriage horse making a break for it?”
    “Across the surface of the lake, with a mysteriously drowned body nearby?” Michael asked.
    “Oh. No, it’s hard to come up with a non-weird explanation for that.”
    Amelia said, “I’m surprised the kelpie was able to do much of anything in this world. You’d have to believe at least a little bit in order to see it. It’s that sliver of belief that makes a thing like that dangerous—believing enough to see it, but not knowing enough to recognize the danger.”
    Michael nodded thanks as Athena handed him a cup. He wrapped his hands around it and let the warmth soothe him before he said, “She might have believed, or at least hoped. She had all kinds of fantasy and fairy-related things in her room. I’d definitely say she was a dreamer.”
    “I’m still concerned that this creature was here at all,” Amelia said, frowning. “There have been no documented sightings for centuries. It takes very deliberate effort to get through the barriers between worlds, and a kelpie isn’t as conscious as something like the Hunt.”
    “So if things like the kelpie can get through, does that mean other stuff might be happening?” Emily asked, sounding a little too casual, like she was trying to fish for information without rousing suspicions.
    “Why? Is something up with you?” Michael asked.
    “I’m not sure. I’m not even sure that it’s anything weird. That’s why I wanted to get a second opinion.”
    “What is it?” Amelia asked.
    “One of our cast members didn’t show up for yesterday’s matinee.”
    That instantly caught Michael’s attention because it reminded him of the day Sophie had appeared at his door when Emily didn’t show up for a matinee. “Another fairy abduction?”
    “I don’t think so, not unless they gave her back pretty quickly. She was at the theater by the end of the show, on crutches. She said she woke up late and then her foot wouldn’t take her weight. It turned out to be broken, like someone had stomped on it really hard. She has no memory of doing anything but going to bed with a perfectly good foot. She also looked dead tired, but I don’t know if that was pain or